Why Did Max Payne Go to Brazil?

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Rockstar talks story setup, bullet time and more.

By Charles Onyett, Greg Miller

Aside from an unfortunate big screen adaptation, Max Payne's been away from the spotlight for a long time. After Max Payne 2 was released back in 2003, franchise creator Remedy Entertainment moved on to make Alan Wake. Rockstar took over development for Max Payne 3, and recently distributed a gameplay trailer as well as revealed what sounds like a final release date. The footage shows Max running around Sao Paulo years after the events of Max Payne 2, and on the surface appears to be a different take on the franchise. No trenchcoats? No rain-soaked, nighttime New York City? Is this really still a Max Payne game? Rob Nelson, the art director at Rockstar Games answered some of our questions.

IGN: Can you bridge the gap between the end of Max Payne 2 and Max Payne 3? Which ending of Max Payne 2 does this game continue from?

Rob Nelson: There's a break of several years between the events of Max Payne 2 and Max Payne 3, and Max spent a great deal of that time and energy trying to drown his memories and pain in alcohol. As a man constantly haunted by his past, his addictions are a poor attempt at moving on, and players will see the consequences of that behavior first-hand as he moves through the story. This is a new chapter in Max's life, told several years later, and we want the story to move on significantly from the previous games while continuing the original storyline in a natural and logical way.

IGN: Previously Max was furious over the murder of his family, does that emotion still fit in, or has he put that event behind him? He still appears to be angry, but seems to have let himself go a little at the same time.

Rob Nelson: It's been a few years, but Max still carries the same emotional baggage from the events of the earlier games - a mixture of anger, regret and guilt - that he's been keeping at bay with alcohol and painkillers. One of the hallmarks of Max Payne is that you get a lot more insight into the mind of the character you play, and that adds emotional weight to the story. Max has been through more psychological anguish than most people, and it shows in both his outward behavior and his psyche.

Classic Max.

IGN: Who is Max working for in Sao Paulo and what causes him to again kill a whole lot of people?

Rob Nelson: Max accepts an offer by a colleague from his days back at the police academy, a guy called Raul Passos. Passos convinces him that there's work for him in executive security in Sao Paulo, putting his skills to good use protecting people against the criminal elements there, including gangs and para-military forces. Max and Passos work for a man named Rodrigo Branco, the patriarch of a wealthy and influential Sao Paulo family with ties to the city's political and social scene. When Rodrigo's wife, Fabiana, is kidnapped and held for ransom, Max finds himself caught up in a tangled mess, much darker and more sinister than it appears on the surface, and compounded by the fact that Max is a foreigner who does not speak the language and is very much out of his depth. Max soon realizes that while he may be a long way from home, when he's standing between the people he's trying to protect and the city's heavily armed criminals, it's not that different from New York.

IGN: Will the graphic novel style of cut-scene still be used to any degree, or will it all be in-engine cinematic cut-scenes?

Rob Nelson: Both! All of the cut-scenes are motion captured, in-engine, but some are also "comic book" style as well. The graphic novel style cut-scenes of the previous Max games were one of the hallmarks of the series, giving a unique aesthetic to story transitions as well as putting a spotlight on what was going on in Max's head. The graphic novel cut-scenes are back for Max Payne 3, but instead of a static panel or page, we're creating an almost motion-comic feel that blends in-game footage, text and Max's iconic monologue, which are over laid on the game to produce something that is pretty amazing and really helps give the game a digital noir feel.

The new look.

IGN: From the footage released it seems as though Max Payne will undergo some changes in appearance as the game progresses. Does he start out with the shaved head? Can his appearance be customized at all?

Rob Nelson: Max's shaved head comes at a pivotal point in the story, and we'll release more information about that later. Unlike the earlier games that took place over the course of one night, Max Payne 3 takes place over the course of a few days, with flash backs to several months before. Players will experience Max in a variety of locales, appearances and states of mind. Max shaves his head at a point where he feels like circumstances are slipping out of his control and that drastic action is required.

We're staying true to the original games here too, so Max's appearance won't be customizable, but you will see lots of different sides to Max's character. Max's appearance changes quite radically between Max Payne 1 and Max Payne 2 (they used completely different models). We feel using James McCaffrey as the look, movement and as the voice of Max helps make everything consistent, and really helps bring the character to life.

Max moves south and brings an AK-47.

IGN: It seems as though Max will still have his trademark slow-motion dive. Will the Bullet Time still function like it did in previous games or has it changed?

Rob Nelson: Much like the originals, Max Payne 3 is about combining groundbreaking action with powerful characterization in a way that feels completely fresh and new. A massive part of this in all three games is the concept of Bullet Time: the choreography of shooting and manipulating time to create the most precise, action-packed gunplay possible. We want players to get a sensation of placing and reacting to every single bullet with precision and style and getting to savor the results.

Max's signature Bullet Time moves are back, but upgraded with the level of sophistication and detail that we can bring to an action game in 2011. A combination of our RAGE engine, blended animations and Natural Motion's Euphoria system control Max's movements, making him react to the world around him realistically, bracing for impact from a diving shoot-dodge or transferring his weight from foot-to-foot while in Bullet Time – the player has an amazing amount of control over the player when running and targeting.

Bullets are individually modeled, and hits register dynamically and individually on every enemy. Every gun is modeled as accurately as possible, with the hammer and slide cocking back after each shot. There are also some additional new features to gunplay in Bullet Time that we'll reveal soon. Our goal is to set a new benchmark for sophistication and feel in a 3rd-person shooter – we've really tried to make the experience as intense and focused as possible.